Mental relaxation is the absence of thoughts. At this stage of human development, it is impossible to command the absence of subconscious thoughts in the same way we induce physical relaxation in our bodies. That is, you cannot stop thinking by forcing your mind to stop thinking. The human mind processes thousands of thoughts every day. These thoughts radiate from your subconscious mind at amazing speeds. When your conscious mind becomes aware of such thoughts, you feel emotions.

However, there is a period of ‘silence’ between thoughts, and this period is not related to the process of thinking. The period during which your mind is quiet can bring you true relaxation if you become aware of this silence. You cannot force the mental periods of inactivity to occur, but when your consciousness perceives the existence of these periods of silence, the consequences are very beneficial to you. What really happens during these periods of mental silence is that the mind is emptied of everything in it. Since the majority of your thoughts are focused on the past and/or the future (worries, fears, sorrows, doubts, and so on), it is in those moments of silence when your mind becomes aware of what is truly real: the moment of now without opinions, judgments, or emotions.

This is a neutral existence where you, as a spiritual being, are observing these mental processes without involvement in how the processes unfold. The concept of mental silence is difficult to understand for many people, most of all because the vast majority have not had the experience of an ‘empty mind.’ However, this is not a new concept. For thousands of years, eastern cultures have practiced and taught methods to become aware of this silence through meditation. Today, these methods are increasingly gaining acceptance in the western world. What we really need to understand about the concept of mental relaxation is that it was a pine gift from our Creator. Think for a moment about the perfection in the design of our human experience.

Every thought is a creative seed. We are creators without the option of NOT creating, but with the option of what to create (since we create with our thoughts which we cannot stop). At the same time, these creative ‘seeds’ are separated by moments of stillness we cannot control, yet we can be aware of those moments or we can ignore them. The immense (and intense) activity of our mind is balanced by the immense passivity that occurs within it. And with our free will, we can decide how to use this activity and passivity.

Another important consideration about true mental relaxation is that, when achieved through meditation, you become aware of the only thing that is real: the moment of NOW. It is impossible to clear your mind in the past or the future. Through meditation, you come to understand the power of the now, the power of being present now. Observe your mind for a couple of days, and note that most of your ‘thinking’ is about the past or the future. The NOW is the only moment that actually exists. That’s why accepting the now, this moment, as the only reality is so important. And that is where true mental relaxation, through methods such as meditation, brings you great benefits.